Tales from the BRABAR Studio: Small Band, Small Bust, What To Find For You?
It is rather difficult for a person with a petite ribcage (26-30 Band) and a small bust (AA-C cups) to find a perfect fitting bra that’s not too big in the band or the cup. BRABAR strives to educate tweens, teens, and young adults about the proper fit of a bra and how to find it. Many other brands may not carry the smaller band sizes and therefore, they use a sister sizing method that can be very confusing to someone who always thought they were a 32A bra size when in reality they hadn’t been.
Many guests to BRABAR Studio are surprised when they get measured and find out that the size they had been wearing had been incorrect all along. It is why so many people do not like wearing bras. They just want to take the bra or bralette off as soon as they get him because it just doesn’t fit correctly.
This happened some months ago at the BRABAR Studio with a young woman looking for good everyday bras for her new job. The young woman in question told me she was a 32B bra size, but usually, even when they are sure about their bra size, it is always good to double-check in a proper measurement.
So I offered to measure her, to which she agreed. She measured a 30-inch ribcage measurement, therefore making her band a 30-band size. Her overbust measurement was 32 ½ inches, which is rounded up to the nearest whole number of 33. To get the bra size, you subtract the band from the overbust measurement. The 30 Band Dize from the 33 Overbust Measurement is a difference of 3 inches. Each inch is a cup size. A 3-inch difference is a C-Cup. So the young woman’s bra size was 30C.
A 30C bra is a difficult size to find in stores. A small band and a small bust meant so many of the options were usually a band too big and a cup too small and thus were not perfectly fit.
I suggested the following bras for everyday use for a petite person with a 30C bra size:
- The Everyday Bra is a versatile, all-day supportive bra with a back closure featuring a smooth design and removable cups for comfort and style. This bra comes in three everyday colors: Black, Mushroom, and Natural Gray. Natural Gray and Mushroom are good neutrals to use under white and light-colored tops. Black is a great all-around bra. The everyday bra has adjustable straps.
- The Soft Cami is a fan-favorite, comfortable, versatile, and supportive bra top. The Soft Cami Bra is a seamless, unlined double-layer wire-free bra top. Cami bras are a great starter teen bralette. It is super soft and comes in great colors as an option as a bralette for teens. The soft cami bra has adjustable straps.
- The Soft Crop/Convertible Multiway Bra is ultra-versatile and comfortable, our soft multiway convertible bra offers endless styling options. Wear it as a backless halter bralette, create a criss-cross style, or use the fully adjustable cami straps to perfect your fit. It's the ideal bra or top for any outfit. The Soft Crop Multiway Convertible Bra Top is a great multipurpose bralette for teens option where you can change the straps to become a thin halter bralette, a criss-cross back teen bralette, or a one-shoulder bralette. With some adjustment, it would also make for a casual strapless bra. The soft crop bra has adjustable straps.
- The Cotton Stretch U-Back Bralette is an elegant U-back design offering a modern silhouette with medium-impact support for daily activities. This cotton bralette is super breathable.
- The Everyday Longline Cami is a sophisticated longline cami bra, ideal for layering, featuring a keyhole back closure and removable cups. The sister cami-bra to the everyday bra. It comes in two colors: Black and Mushroom. Both are great options for teen bralettes. The everyday longline cami-bra bra has adjustable straps.
- The trendy and best-selling Soft Day Bra with back closure combines the everyday ease of a bralette with a surprisingly supportive bra. The Soft Day Bra comes in three everyday colors: Black, White, and Ballet Pink. The Black Soft Day Bra is a great all-around, everyday bra. The Ballet Pink is a fun, yet neutral color to go under those white shirts and it won’t show. After all, white under white shows. The White Bra is good for when you need specifically a white bra. It can also be used under dark shirts.
- The Soft V Laceback Bralette is a reversible and comfortable bralette that adds a pretty touch to your daily wardrobe V-neck lace back bra top. The Soft V Lace Bralette is perfect for everyday lace with a supersoft touch, providing both support and style. The beautiful lace is nice enough even to show with open-back or backless tops.
In the end, the young woman bought a Soft Day Bra, Soft V Laceback Bralette, and Cotton Stretch U-Back Bralette for her everyday needs. The Soft Day Bra is a perfect classic bra without a bra that can be used for work, every day, or at home. The Cotton Stretch U-Back Bralette is a great medium-impact sports bra gym option for yoga, walking, and other medium-impact activities. The Soft V Laceback Bralette is a cute and stylish lace bralette that can be used with an open-back or backless top, a sheer top, or just for everyday comfort.
She was happy to learn about her correct band size and cup size and how they related to each other. The success of finding how to measure bust sizes and band sizes is the key to finding the bra for you.
Here’s the cheat sheet on how to find the correct band and how to measure bust sizes:
- Measure Underbust: Wrap a soft measuring tape around your body, right below your breasts. The number you read on the tape is your band size. Round to the nearest even whole number.
- Measure Overbust: Wrap a soft measuring tape around your body, over the fullest part of your breasts. The number you read on the tape is your bust size; round to the nearest whole number.
- Calculate Cup Size: Subtract your band size from your bust size. This number is your cup size or the volume of your breast tissue. Your cup size in inches is represented by an alphabet (sizes AAA to DDD/F). 1 inch = A cup, 2 inches = B cup, 3 inches = C cup, etc.
- Your bra size is your band size + your cup size alphabet. BUST - BAND = Cup Size in inches
- This is converted to bra size as Band Size and Cup Size
